While most of you were getting high on fireworks smoke and downing kosher hot dogs for Memorial Day, I was holding down the gossip fort and obsessing over Amal Alamuddin and George Clooney. Over the weekend, Amal and George took a private tour of Highclere Castle, also known as “the Downton Abbey castle” (Highclere stands in for the Crawley family’s residence). I mentioned in yesterday’s post that it was possible George and Amal have started talking about wedding venues, but I never imagined that it would be possible to book Highclere for the actual wedding. Damn, bro: you’re going to marry your lady in a castle?! How Kardashian of Clooney.
George Clooney and fiancé Amal Alamuddin are busy making wedding plans. And while they’ve pretty much decided to walk down the aisle in September – the one year anniversary of when they met – they were still looking for on the perfect venue. Now they’ve zeroed in on Highclere Castle near London – the home of TV’s Downton Abbey! As MailOnline reported earlier this week, Clooney flew to London on Wednesday and whisked his fiancé away for a surprise mini holiday in the English Countryside. And one of George’s romantic destinations was Highclere, because he knows that while his lady love isn’t a big TV fan, she adores Downton Abbey.
‘George became close friends with Hugh Bonneville, who plays Lord Robert Crawley, when they did Monuments Men together last year,’ says a source. ‘And they really hit it off. He contacted Hugh and asked him to arrange a private tour of the castle. Amal was blown away. When he saw his bride-to-be’s reaction to the spectacular Victorian castle, set on 1,000 acres of parkland, he began making some discrete inquires about having their wedding performed there. And he was told they would be most happy to accommodate them!’
Highclere has been the residence of the Carnarvon family since 1679. And it’s currently inhabited by the 8th Lord and Lady Carnarvon and their family. The castle does allow weddings, and prices to hire parts of the castle alone, begin at about $23,000 for one night. Couples can marry in the Saloon, with the bride descending the sweeping oak staircase featured on the series. That room can hold about 120 guests, but the dining room can accommodate up to 400 people. They will also provide Marquees on the grounds where guests can dine, dance and celebrate.
The castle boasts an award winning chef in Paul Brooke Taylor, who prepares some of the Carnarvon families favorites, as well as vegetarian and vegan fare. They also specialize in authentic Victorian foods and they offer an extensive wine list.
‘George loves the idea of marrying at the castle, because it’s a glamorous place he could secure,’ says the source. ‘And the same way Kanye West and Kim’s wedding guests were given a private tour of The Palace of Versailles, a private tour of not only the castle and grounds, but of the famous Egyptian Antique Exhibition in the Castle cellars could be arranged.’
Highclere would also be a perfect place for George and Amal to tie the knot because of its close proximity to London and the fact it’s only 50 miles away from Heathrow Airport. And while many of Amal’s family members live in Dubai, and Lebanon, her mother lives in London.
‘Amal grew up in London, and attended school in Buckinghamshire,’ says another source. ‘And she went to University at Oxford. She currently works in London so she has many close British friends. Her mother Baria has also been living in London for years – since the 1980’s – and is the respected editor of a London – based Arab newspaper. Her father, Ramzi returned to Lebanon in the early 1990’s, but he often visits London and can easily travel there.
‘There is still a lot to be decided in addition to wedding details, like where the couple will live,’ says the source. ‘And Amal would like for George to sell his Studio City house because it’s such a ‘guy place,’ and find somewhere more suitable to them start their life together.
HOLD UP she’s trying to get The Eternal Bachelor to sell his Studio City pad?!!? Honey, he’s had that pad through like a dozen serious girlfriends. He raised dogs and pigs in that home. He and his bros have barbeques at that home. That Studio City pad is one of the great loves of his life. He’s not going to sell it. He might buy a home in London, but he will never sell the Studio City place. He’ll need somewhere to recuperate when this marriage goes to hell.
As for getting married at Highclere… that staircase is amazing, and it would be quite show-stopping to have Amal walk down those stairs in her wedding gown. But I’m not really feeling it on Clooney’s behalf. He has that beautiful spread in Como, Italy – why not just do it there, for the love of God? People would kill to hold their wedding in such a beautiful locale.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Well, you know…she is, finally, a woman of his level. Shouldn’t he cut all ties with his past before marrying a woman of his level? And starting a family with a woman of his level? And…
Ok, I’ll stop now.
*backs away slowly*
Hahahahahahahahahaha omg spat my tea everywhere!
Hahahaha
All wrong. They will marry in Sep in Italy then fly everyone to Lebanon for the reception where gc will make his oft uttered 70 virgin joke. People mag who was contracted to follow them from day one will gush endlessly how the bride was swallowed in her size 000 gown, and wore sunglasses . Brits will proclaim she is the most beloved woman in the land as she embarks on another year long absence, but she will call her mommy every day. Einstein will go back to the shelter. It’ll all happen…betcha.
Ooops! Reply meant for comment 2….
Is anyone else already bored and tired of this lady?
Meeeeee…..
+10000000
Getting in line . . .
count me in.
*Raises both hands and feet and the paws of my dogs*
Me too.
No, it’s the most exciting thing EVER.
I was tired of her by the third day of this never ending story. George better keep the man cave, because I agree he’ll eventually need it.
He better put that apartment in the pre-nup. Or maybe he is in a hurry to get out of the US for awhile. He can play in London and Italy. Speaking of pre-nups and celeb weddings in general, I heard “Golddigger” by Kanye. He must have forgotten he made that song, right? Riiiiight.
Completely tired and annoyed by both her and Clooney. The guy is such a pathetic joke.
And sorry, but she looks stupid with her daily (staged, I am sure) try hard photo ops.
Me too. Clooney’s PR went into overdrive since this engagement to prove to the public that she is “at his level”, whatever the hell that means. He is trying to sell to us that she is this amazing lawyer but all I see is a woman who is loving the attention and vacations of being a celebrity wife more than her real job. She comes from a rich family who probably helped her get the career she has now and she is on a team of lawyers representing high profile clients. Clooney has become worse than her ex-girlfriends (like Keibler) in trying to make us believe that he is so happy with his current partner. Please.
I think “at his level” means she is still being paid for her part but the payout is a lot larger than Stacey’s or Elizabetta’s because Amal is (drum roll please!) “on his level” and that, my children, costs a whole lot more!
*jumps on bandwagon*
I never found her particularly interesting, I see her more as a lottery winner. Her now daily pap strolls are almost irritating (can’t be bothered to muster any real irritation).
I just clicked on this because I look at every Celebitchy post over breakfast, regardless of who’s in it.
The clock is ticking on this chick.
I am! And I also agree, he should keep his house in the valley.
YES!! And Clooney.
Count me in. There is something so staged about this whole engagement-marriage thing. The PR and the pap walks ARE creepy.
Not sure why he would need to sell his L.A home. I am pretty sure he is financially stable and can afford to keep his home in L.A.
Yes but if he lives here for too long will have to pay taxes and they are higher here than they are in the US for his bracket. So he will just have to stay no longer than 90 days like the others do who want to bypass the tax
He more than likely will not be in England full time since he is a busy actor. So him staying beyond 3 months anywhere seems unlikely at this stage of his life.
Eliza – that’s 90 days in any one tax year, April-April.
Engagement or not who sells their long term property for someone they’ve been seeing for mere months? Or who even makes that demand of someone they’ve been seeing for mere months?!
At first, this whole engagement was interesting to me, because the eternal bachelor Clooney is getting married. Now I kind of wish, that I wouldn’t hear about it until I see the wedding pictures.
i don’t know, i am kind of doubtful that they’ll make it down the proverbial aisle. after so many years of being a single guy free to pick up various waitresses, why would he get hitched now?
This is the beginning of the “She tried to change George too much and it didn’t work out for her too well. . . .” narrative. Living in London? Selling bachelor pads.. Getting married at Downton Abbey? Will they be inviting Grandmama? I give this . . . 2 more months.
This relationship is already doomed. I can already see them getting divorced over the issue of living in London vs. LA.
Good point.
From the moment this ‘engagement’ was announced, I had ”Yeah right” feelings about it. I never thought George would go through with it – it was all PR damage control. But with the relentless ‘leaking’ of details about how George proposed, how much he’s in love with Amal’s ‘brains’, the daily ‘candid’ shots of Amal in London….. I started thinking ”He’s going to HAVE to get married now, isn’t he?”
But as you say, maybe this is the start of the ”Oh she tried to change George and he was just too much his own man” narrative. It’ll be back to the old story, albeit with an expensive engagement ring: Every woman wants to tame George, but he’s having none of it. Let’s see.
I believe the wedding will actually take place and I am betting the marriage will last less than two years. Can we find a bookie to take our bets? The Brits bet on everything.
Lmao! Love it!
Yes a marriage and two years may be the contract she got, because… ..you know….she’s on HIS Level……
Whereas the others just got girlfriend contracts because ……they weren’t on HIS level, …you see. 🙂
I know other commentators have said this but everything about this engagement seems odd. George has brought his girlfriends on the red carpet and to other events but at the same time he kept his personal life private.
Now we are getting all these reports about wedding plans, engagement rings, meeting future in laws etc. I can’t recall any reports of George meeting the parents of previous girlfriends.
It all seems to be a little too neat and tidy( Hollywood script ) Either he is gearing up for a political career ( unlikely) or some serious dirt will be hitting the fan in the next few months . I will believe it when they actually
get married.
There are rumors that he was about to be named in the Bryan Singer case – probably just as a party-goer – so he got himself engaged post-haste. But those are just rumors.
If he had been involved in those parties, getting hitched now really wouldn’t make him look any better, in fact, the engagement would be incredibly transparent. I don’t believe that that is the reason. I think people were wildly speculating on conspiracy theories. But, of course, I could be wrong. I think that the political angle has more of a ring of truth, and seems more plausible.
If he was a party goer and this case gets some serious legs he will still be named as a witness regardless of getting married.
That is an interesting bit of info. I bet we would be very surprised by the people who were probably at those parties.
Yep, I have also found it very peculiar that George has suddenly…”just got to get married!”… to a girl the public/his PR person… had no idea he was dating till suddenly 3 months ago.
A girl that was not important enough to take to the Oscars. Where he was a winner. I found that the oddest of it all. George likes to have the girlfriend on his arm at those huge PR friendly parties.
What bug me especially, is the whole very public display of it all. The same man who squawked the loudest, about how much he despises the paparazzi. Now has them on speed dial. Making sure that big diamond engagement ring, got its own cover of People magazine.
So yes, I am also wondering what the hell happen… and that is he desperately trying to cover up what ever PR nightmare, is waiting to happen.
Or is it really about the last girl… moving on a little too quick. And little George felt a slight burn from that… 🙂
There has been another occasion he didn’t take her to lately: there was a dinner at The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity a couple of days ago. George was honoured with The Arts for Humanity Award, and in his speech, he jokingly mentioned his upcoming marriage:
“I find we all have something very much in common, besides the fact we’re in shock that I’m getting married,” the 53-year- old bachelor told guests. “We’re all doing the best we can to try to stop violence, and our efforts often come up short.”
http://washpost.bloomberg.com/Story?docId=1376-N5XLC86TTDSE01-6D86EGVAACBEF0ENLSIIO033H0
Amal did not attend, but of course she’s known to be pro-Palestine. Here, too, I wonder how this will work out.
@Siri, can’t really see how being pro-Palestinian means you wouldn’t attend an event to do with the holocaust. I’m Palestinian and I’m giong to Yad Vashem (the biggest Holocaust museum in the world) on Friday.
@Leen: I didn’t say I personally see a problem in her attening, but I could imagine that she might have wanted to prevent any discussion about her opinion on current affairs between Israel and Palestine. I was simply wondering why she didn’t attend, and support her husband- to-be as well as the cause.
@siri, I understand Siri but I guess I’m a little sensitive about associating commemoration of the holocaust with political opinions about Palestine and Israel. They are two separate issues and the holocaust was a terrible tragedy that any compassionate person, no matter what their beliefs are, can see how horrific it is.
This whole engagement feels strange to me. I´m not convinced and *putting my tinfoil hat on* I still think that this is a major cover up for something else.
For years and years Clooney enjoyed the easy relationships and like a broken record told everyone that he will never wed again and doesn´t want to have kids. And all of a sudden he changed his mind and feeds everything about the proposal to the press? I may be a cynic but I don´t belive the whole “he finally found the one” shtick.
In fairness, they met after last year’s Oscars, when George won Best Picture, and he wasn’t nominated and didn’t attend this year’s, so there hasn’t been an opportunity to have her attend a red carpet yet.
Bingo
But that’s misleading, George would have been on the top tier of the invited list to this years Oscars especially if won last year, he could have gone and taken her if he wanted to.
I agree with whoever said the engagement is just very odd and very rushed.
Get married at his cottage in Italy? No way!
I know! Really!
He does not want to have to sell that house in Italy, when the marriage goes south. And it has a taint of an ex-wife all over it. Never going to happen.
Nope. George will marry somewhere that he never has to see again. 🙂
The DMail said they are looking at DowntonAbbey.
Villas on the lake at Como don’t have a lot of space between their property lines and the road. I doubt the Como house can be secured enough from the paps. Highclere has a serious land buffer between gawkers and the main house.
Hmmmmm, for someone who started out so interesting and likeable, this woman’s going down fast. I’m starting to think Stacy Keibler is somewhere with a very smug look on her face.
Reminds me of Heather Mills and Paul McCartney. This will end in tears.
She makes me come over all Dowager Countess.
George knows how to live well.
She seems very… new money.
How snobby. George is not from an old money family. Besides old Aunt Rosemary and a Kentucky newscaster father, he didn’t come from a privileged or wealthy family. He used to pick tobacco and rent out his own car for goodness sakes.
Already problems in paradise? LOL It could be the start of the end how quickly Amal has fallen. I wonder if it has to do with some of her views and the clubs she has been apart of since college? I can’t imagine Amal getting on all that well with some of Georges friends. No surer way then to be shown the door then to start getting pushy with George and making demands. Amal needs to read the girlfriend handbook she may have an engagement ring but that doesn’t mean she will get a wedding.
George seems to have heavily revised the girlfriend handbook this time around, so who knows? Girlfriends travel to him, not the other way around. They vacation in Cabo and Como, not Seychelles, and Tanzania, and Downtown Abbey. They might get their own small article in People magazine about their beauty routine or something, not a four page exclusive with him and an engagement ring. I think the only thing we can be sure of is that George has suddenly become, if not unpredictable, then less predictable than he used to be. Maybe that house will be on the market by June. 😉
Assuming this is the real thing, and assuming she has been super busy with her high level career with no previous serious relationships, I could see this imploding soon. There was probably an element of challenge in it for him, and I think she might like the attention.
At some point the thrill of the chase will be over, especially if she starts dictating what homes he should sell, friends he should be around, etc. Again, this assumes this is a genuine relationship.
She really has the worst style. Nothing fits her correctly, everything has weird bunching or elastic, and don’t get me started on her 2 different colored shoes with that pink baby dress she wore the other day.
I know, she lost me with the glitter and hearts, t shirt. blech.
I highly doubt he would get married here — a little too tacky. He would know that. It’ll probably be in Europe though.
Please George don’t get married at Highclere Castle I will ruin the show for me.
people change or suddenly find someone who ticks all the boxes. yet with George it seems so weird. all of a sudden its a huge media storm and they are participating. so it seems orchestrated. i wonder why. is it because of Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hit home and he was aware how people think about him? is he somehow involved in other big scandals? some of them involving non heterosexual romps?
whatever it is, im not so sure if it really is staged. because it looks all so obvious. i would think in Hollywood they know how to set up something like that. would they really do so many mistakes and make it so obvious? say what you want about Clooney, but he knows how to handle the press and appear as a good guy, women love him, guys think he is cool, thats so rare, he knows what he is doing.
and if it is a set up because of allegations which may come to light i would think it would make him look even worse, so i doubt they would go down that road. if he was single it would seem more believable if he denies it than being suddenly married after such a short time when he was a bachelor since forever.
I never thought I would say this to Mrs. Keibler-Pobre: Congrats on everything and your game! George has never looked so desperate like he is now. Well done, Keibler, well done!
Yes, this girl played him very well- and he knows that. And his efforts now seem really pushed, far too public, and yes, very desperate. He makes a fool of himself, again, just this time, he won’t be able to just send the girl away.
I kinda… I dunno, don’t get the vitriol thrown at her? I’m curious: did her people ever issue a statement that she wanted the paparazzi to respect her privacy, or something of that sort?
Anyways, she’s an accomplished, successful woman, and her client roster speaks volumes. Also imo her street style is mostly great. I don’t know why people expect a barrister would constantly be in suits? And to all the naysayers who think just because she’s visiting somewhere she’s not working… um, lawyers work all the time. She might take a sunny stroll somewhere but just because she’s not in an office does *not* mean she’s not working. I think she’s smart, accomplished, and beautiful.
I don’t get the vitriol either. People are going on about how she does daily pap strolls. Does she? I have seen her photographed about 3 times since she has been back in London. Once coming out of the hair dressers (and that was bad because normal barristers are too busy to get their and nails done?) The next time when she was wearing the blue/purple dress and was papped either coming or going from her chambers in Doughty Street with a Queen’s Council, and the 3rd time was in the bubblegum dress when she had lunch with other barristers from Doughty Street. But these are apparently set up by her team and cannot possibly be her working and just going to lunch. Maybe “normal” human rights lawyers do not have lunch, leave their offices or get their hair done?
All the other reports are probably a load of crap, because I would not trust a thing the Daily Mail says because if you live in Britain you know that this (among others) are the worst rags ever to crawl out of fleet street.
So, because people have a differing opinion it is read as hate? Maybe people do not like her because they recognize she is an opportunist. Maybe they find her style dreadful and her credentials un-appealing. Just because she has a strong list of clients means nothing. There are many incompetent people with an impressive roster of clients. Why do we all have to agree?
I think he actually fell in love with Stacy. This new relationship just screams rebound. I know quite a few people who screwed up a good relationship, realized it after the other person had moved on, and then quickly married the next person they were with. Only a few are still with that person.
It could have been love or he is PO’d that she had the gall to stay in the spotlight, get pregnant and married in a short period of time after their relationship ended. All the others just went quietly away into oblivion. It seems they seem to be trying to upstage the other. He has a photo with his bride to be, then Stacy has a bikini photo and vice versa. Probably nothing to this and again, I don’t like conspiracy theories, but this one just goes too far. He is usually so private with his non-professional life that these pap walks and details on everything to do with his new woman, their life and upcoming wedding are just so, so odd. And I have absolutely nothing against her, but she seems to really enjoy the spotlight, which is fine of course. It could all be coincidence and it is true love. We will see.
I hope she doesn’t think marriage = changing him. Of course compromise is important. And I’ll leave it there.
Do you honestly think George would ask Amal that one most important question he’ll ever ask her in his life (to marry him) in a house that he was going to sell a couple of months later? I doubt it, and I don’t think she asked him to either.
If this woman is supposed to be so mart, why the heck is she rushing into a marriage with a long term bachelor? I don’t deny she’s smart, she has a legal degree, but I’m thinking maybe she’s desperate for love or he is trying to shed his life long bachelor status, and was able to talk her into it.
I found this whole arrangement interesting at first, but now it just smells fishy. I would write more, but I’m pretty sure everyone else has said similar.
Yeah, not all professionals are smart. She reeks opportunist to me.
Fun fact: The Studio City house used to belong to Clark Gable.
Didn’t know that. He’s had the home nearly 20 years and can surely afford to keep it, if he wishes. I cannot imagine he’ll completely pull up stakes from LA.
…and George hosted a fund raiser for President Obama at that house two years ago that netted $15M.
http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/11/politics/california-obama-fundraiser/index.html
# 22 Browniecakes He’s very proud of that fact and has mentioned it in several interviews in print and on T.V. over the years so theirs no way he’s going to get rid of it .It might actually be the death of him.if he had to.
If this was true, she would be stupid. He LOVES his Studio City house. Aside from that, all his important contacts are in the States, as well as his friends. And not to forget the weather, I would not underestimate that factor. Being used to a lot of sunshine, and outdoor living, and then London for good…no, I can’t see this happening. But I wonder who feeds all these details to magazines. Could it be that they will marry somewhere without the public knowing, and the paps distracted with this Downton Abbey story?? Or did George really become a completely different person, and Amal and her family are wearing the pants now?
Oh, This is THE BEGINNING OF THE ENDING… I’m already seeing plates and china being tossed across the room: You have to sell, if you don’t i’s because you don’t love me…. “
I believe that the only reason he is settling down with her is, and this is not founded theory, but its mine all the same, is that he will eventually run for public office. That’s what the huge fuss is about. I doubt a woman like her, who has achieved so much on her own really wants a kid. I mean, she isn’t in her prime and neither is George, but they know the paparazzi will spin it that way. That’s why they’ll be covered on that front. She is a lawyer and probably would love to be the spouse of a politician. It would probably give her more leeway to get what she wants done, but, then again, my thoughts could all be horse crap. I mean, all she might want to do is live in England with her Georgey-Poo, lol.
If she starts bossing George about and laying down conditions I can see trouble brewing, he will stay quite for a while and then do a runner. (or was that the plan all along)
Someone kept calling her Anal Armageddon on on other gossip site and I have a feeling that might very well describe the Amal/George relationship.
is her phone glued to her hand?
Hmm.. this may be the beginning of the end. First, she will pressure George to give up the Studio City house. Then she will pressure him to move to London fulltime. He will start chafing at the requests to change his life. He will have no choice but to call off the engagement because he realizes he can never change and Amal deserves sooo much better than him. Wait and see………
D listed has a hilarious post about Downton Abbey being a possible wedding site but it’s not only about that but about the whole engagement in general.They are so wickedly funny about everything over there.
I don’t know what it is about her, but I cannot stand Amal from what I’ve read of her.
She keeps (allegedly) making demands of George, without actually making changes herself. Why should he give up his LA home? It’s not like he needs to sell it to buy a home in London and he clearly has very strong ties to that place. I don’t know if it’s just press spin making it seem this way, but it really seems like she’s trying to change who he fundamentally is as a person.
Maybe George is 100% up for it. Maybe he’s completely serious about marrying her and it’s absolutely what he wants. However, the whole thing seems very rushed to me, and part of me feels like she’s just trying to get his name on those papers before he can think things through and change his mind. George has always been the consummate bachelor and it can’t be easy after so long to do a complete 180.
If they were taking things slower, and she were making changes herself without demanding big changes from him I’d see this relationship in a totally different light. She’s clearly very intelligent and independent, but the way this is progressing makes me feel like she’s either overconfident in her hold on him and thinks she has 100% control or she feels totally insecure and is rushing to make sure he doesn’t have a chance to back out.
Either way it seems to me like something isn’t kosher.
I would not be surprised if George gets cold feet by now. These stories could just be made up, but IF true, I would think it’s her/her family pushing, and if I’m not mistaken, even HIS parents told him to take her serious. Amal for sure is clever, but in regard to relationships with men perhaps rather insecure/inexperienced. That fast engagement to me looks like: put a ring on it- otherwise I’m not going to do anything with you. SHE’s concerned about her image, too. But then why not being ‘just’ engaged to actually get to know each other? THAT I don’t understand. And why does it have to be so public, and so overly showy? I mean, Downton Abbey…what movie are we in now? I always thought that if Clooney ever would get married again, it would happen somewhere remote, and him just coming back with a grin and some bold joke about it like: ‘See what happens when you have one Casamigos too many?’ I guess only time will tell what’s really behind this, but I can’t help thinking she and her family are a bit manipulative.
PEOPLE (of course) confirms that the wedding will be in Italy in september. The informations come from Amal’s family (like always) and Cindy Crawford.
Making Clooney sell his LA Pad….STRIKE ONE!
I have this feeling of DOOM for George-has Amal already put the choke chain on to keep George on a tight leash forever after? I hoped he would meet and perhaps marry a woman who was his intellectual equal, but I was hoping for someone closer to his age, less glam, and more laid back. A woman who is attractive and smart who would rather play in the dirt than have a nice manicure. I envision an archeology professor working in Africa; a female Indiana Jones whose quest is helping the local people. Maybe George can meet such a woman this summer, and she can be American-working from Stanford! Just a tiny commute by comparison!
I do think that it’s a waste not to use the Como pad. I bet Amal and her family want a HUGE wedding-that is so not George.
I admire her professionally, but personally I am having doubts. This seems like Clooney’s own Twilight Zone. Let’s all transmit doubtful vibes to George BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!!!
I always thought that IF Clooney ever gets married, it will be somewhere remote, and him just coming back with a big grin, making some bold joke about it like: ‘See what happens if you have one Casamigos too many?’ This here is indeed so not George, also not the choice of partner. Oh, and by the way, are you working at Stanford’s? 🙂